Tolerant Teaching of Islam as Personified by the Holy Prophet (sa)

NOTE: Alislam Team takes full responsibility for any errors or miscommunication
in this Synopsis
of the Friday Sermon

In his Friday sermon Huzuraba gave a discourse on the tolerant teaching
of Islam as personified by the Holy Prophetsaw.

Huzuraba
said the non-Muslim objection that the Holy Prophetsaw God forbid brought a religion that offers nothing but harshness
and killing and that there is no concept of religious tolerance and freedom
in Islam and that it is this teaching that has become a part of the Muslim
psyche.

Huzuraba said he has mentioned many times before that it is unfortunate
that the actions of certain sections of Muslims, who work outside the Islamic
code of conduct, have assisted the world to put across distasteful and
offensive material about our beloved mastersaw.

On the contrary, Islamic teaching, as expounded by the Holy Qur’an,
repeatedly mentions the rights of non-Muslims, justice and freedom in
matters of religion etc. Fighting is permitted only at specific times
and with conditions.
In the times of the Holy Prophetsaw certain
situations were created when fighting had to be carried out. Today the
actions of the ‘Jihadi’ organisations have given the world
the chance to make odious attacks on the most supreme benefactor of humanity
who would
not miss a chance to facilitate the enemy even at the time of battle.

He
was compassion personified in all aspects of his life and set great examples
of freedom of conscience and displayed the greatest of compassion
in triumph
at the victory of Mecca giving total freedom of religion and thus fulfilling
the Quranic injunction of ‘there should be no compulsion in religion’ (2:257)

Huzuraba
cited the extreme oppression of the 13 years of the life of the Holy
Prophetsaw that he spent in Mecca following
prophethood; the incident of Ta’if, the desperate episode of Sha’ib
Abi Talib and the subsequent migration to Medina. When the pagans of
Mecca did not leave him alone even in Medina and invaded the town it
had been a
very short while that the Holy Prophetsaw
had left their relentless persecution; yet he adhered to his inherent
high morals
and supreme sense of courtesy even at the time of conflict.

Huzuraba remarked
that it is said that all is fair in war yet at the Battle of Badr when
the Muslims encamped by a water-spring as a strategic point
a few people of Quraish came by to get some water. When some Companionsra stopped them from getting the water,
the Holy
Prophetsaw refrained his Companions and
allowed the water to be taken, unconditionally.

Huzuraba said this was done
only to uphold human values and was in no way an attempt to appease the
pagans of Quraish whose bloodthirsty tendencies
towards
the Muslims were common knowledge.

Huzuraba related the incident of Ikrama,
the son of Abu Jahl, who was a most vicious enemy of Islam and after the
victory of Mecca was given
the death
penalty for
his war crimes. He fled towards Yemen, however his wife pleaded mercy
for him from the Holy Prophetsaw and somehow
fetched him
back. When Ikrama came in the presence of the Holy Prophetsaw the Prophet stood up as a mark of respect for him in his capacity
as the leader of the enemy. Ikrama wanted confirmation of his clemency
and
also that his pardon was on the grounds that he stayed firm on his
own faith. Confirmation
of this by the Prophet moved Ikrama immensely so much so that he embraced
Islam.

Huzuraba said this is how Islam was spread; with love and civility;
while maintaining religious freedom and freedom of conscience.
Huzuraba explained the freedom the Holy Prophetsaw afforded the slaves. That out of sheer compassion for
his salvation,
the Prophet
affectionately asked a Jew slave on his death bed to believe in Islam.
Certainly he disliked slavery and when after marriage his wife Hadhrat
Khadija (may
Allah be pleased with her) gave all her wealth and slaves to the Prophet
he made
it clear to her that he would free all the slaves; she responded that
he could do
what he liked and indeed the Prophet freed all the slaves.

Despite given
freedom, one of his slaves Zaidra stayed
with the Prophet and was most devoted to him. When his long
lost family
- who turned out to be very well-off - tracked him down and came to get
him, Zaid refused to leave the side of the Holy Prophetsaw.

Huzuraba said after prophethood the inherent and natural high standards
of freedom of the Holy Prophetsaw were further
enhanced by
the Shariah (religious law) that was revealed to him.

By the time the
rule of the Holy Prophetsaw was established
it was ensured that the feelings of others were not hurt.
Huzuraba
cited the incident of a Muslim and Jew who quarrelled over whose prophet
was given most excellence and the Muslim slapped the Jew in anger.
When the matter
was taken to the Prophet he decided in the Jew’s favour and told
the Muslim not to give him preference over other prophets. Huzuraba also
related the incident
when the Prophet stood up as a mark of respect as a funeral procession
of Jew went by and that at the victory of Khyber he ordered that some
Torah manuscripts
that were found be returned to the Jews despite their earlier attitude.

To
further elucidate the sense of justice of the Prophetsaw, Huzuraba read
out some clauses of a pact that was made between the Jews and the Muslims
of
Medina.

It stated that people of both faiths would live with mutual
kindness and sincerity and would refrain from oppression, each people would
have religious
freedom,
the life and property of all inhabitants would be respected, all
manner of disagreements would be brought to the Holy Prophetsaw for decision
and each decision would be made in accordance to the respective people’s
religious law. As the Holy Prophetsaw
was the commander-in-chief, it was stated that no one would go to
war without his permission. Huzuraba said
the Jihadi organisations could take guidance from this; in that actions
should not be taken without the permission of the government of the
country.

The pact stated that if any people fought against the Jews
or the Muslims, they would help each other and if Medina was attacked,
everyone
would
contend together,
that the Jews would not enter into any pact with the Quraish of
Mecca.

Huzuraba also related the incident when the Holy Prophetsaw permitted the visiting Christians from Najran
to offer their
worship inside the mosque. At the time of the Prophet it was
the responsibility of
the
Muslims to protect the churches and inns of the Christians as
well as to safeguard their worship.

Huzuraba read an extract from the writings
of the Promised Messiahas expounding the freedom and breadth
of the
Islamic teaching.

Huzuraba reiterated the supreme example of compassion
and forgiveness as set by the Holy Prophetsaw
after the victory
of
Mecca and
invoked a thousand salutation and blessing on one who gave
us this teaching; Huzuraba prayed that may we be enabled by
Allah to act
on this teaching.